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Rating: Chocolate Lessons
A film by Claudio Cupellini
Starring Luca Argentero, Violante Placido, Neri Marcorè, Hassani Shapi, Josefia Forlì, Matteo Oleotto, Monica Scattini, Francesco Pannofino, Ivano Marescotti, Vito Bicocchi.
Genre Comedy, color 99 minutes
Production Italy 2007
Kamal (Hassani Shapi) is an Egyptian pastry chef who finds himself in Italy forced to work as a carpenter for Mattia (Luca Argentero), a surveyor dedicated to profit without scruples, albeit at the expense of his employees.
One day Kamal, forced to climb onto a roof without safety scaffolding, falls and breaks both arms. Mattia, terrified of a possible lawsuit, offers Kamal money, but the pastry chef "proposes" only one condition to avoid ending up in jail: replacing him in a chocolatiers' competition. Having become a perfect Egyptian immigrant, after a dozen tanning sessions, a haircut, and shabby clothing; Mattia, presenting himself with an almost perfect foreign accent, will tackle the famous Perugina school where a poetic Neri Marcorè (the maestro) will teach him, besides the secrets of chocolate, respect and the taste for life. Mattia will also learn love through the sweet and rebellious Cecilia (Violante Placido), while Kamal will fulfill his lifelong dream.
Perugina, to celebrate its hundred years of history, chooses a comedy, at times amusing, where unfortunately the comedic situations, constructed with impeccable precision, follow one another, detaching from the story. Undeniable is the performance of Neri Marcorè which, however, highlights the limited acting skills of Luca Argentero. Cupellini manages the ensemble cast of the film very well in the scenes concerning life inside the school, balancing the different characteristics of the characters. The cinematography is good, and in the editing, the choice of jam-cut to emphasize Cecilia's indecision about getting involved with Mattia. Intelligent is the idea of narrating with the lightness of comedy the issue of illegal work, the accidents in construction sites, and the difficulty immigrants face in fulfilling their dreams in Western society.
A good chocolate, without filling!
Lisa Bencivenni
lisabencivenni@yahoo.it
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